A Walk to a Friends
by CartoonCaster21
Summary: Takes place after "A Walk into Brotherhood". Sonic and Tails are visiting some friends to have a get-together, but an enemy of Sonic's decides to crash the party. Can Sonic regain what was taken from him and still keep his friends and Mobius safe? The last bit of my "A Walk" series is in this story. Thank you to everyone who supported.
1. A Walk to a Friends

**Hello everybody, I'm back! And with the fourth oneshot! This is a continuation to "A Walk into Brotherhood". In this one, six more characters're gonna make appearances! And a returning character, plus, one'a the six characters, some'a ya have been waiting for. Yay! Here's hoping it'll be enjoyed. Thanks to HealingHearts24, SmurfyFriend, UKsLaster, peachy author and TatlTails for their support ^^ **

**A Walk to a Friends**

_Bang, bang, bang! _

Tails sat in his footie blue pyjamas on the kitchen floor, holding two wooden spoons in his hands that he was using to hit the large pot that sat upside-down in front of him. Tails had woken up early and had climbed out of his bed over the rails, thanks to the help of his twin-tails. Seeing as though Sonic was still sleeping, he just decided to keep himself occupied for a while until Sonic woke up. Obviously not knowing how to make breakfast, Tails just rummaged through the cupboards and found a large pot. It rolled out and made a cool noise once hitting the floor. Using two big spoons he found in the drawer, he began to bang the pot. "Twinkle, twinkle, little star, how I wonder what you are. Up above the world so high, like a diamond in the sky. Twinkle, twinkle little star, how I wonder what you are." Tails sung to himself. Tails had heard the tune on TV before on that kid's channel Sonic always put on for him. With his surprisingly good memory, Tails had memorized majority of all the songs that he had heard.

_Bang, bang, bang!_

"Huh-what?!" Sonic jumped, bolting up in his bed. Looking around, he calmed down seeing he was just in his room. The clanking noise had disturbed him, jolting him awake with a start. But now being awake, he identified the sound. "Pots?" Sonic questioned, pulling the covers off him as he got out of bed. Quickly, he pulled his shoes on that always sat next to his bed and made his way to his door. Opening it, he followed the noise to the kitchen where he saw his little brother. Sonic had to chuckle to himself. Of course Tails would be able to get outta bed. Maybe he should've gotten higher rails, but he didn't see what good that would do as Tails would still be able to fly over them unless they were touching the ceiling.

"G'morning buddy," Sonic greeted. Tails stopped his playing for a moment to greet Sonic. "Good morning," he smiled, and then continued to bang the pot while singing. "Brown sugar, apple sauce, spices, flower, put it in the oven for half-an-hour. Bake bubble, bubble bake, apple pie is fun to make!" Sonic looked over at Tails, seeing how he was singing those rhymes. He had heard the song before, just the other day when Tails was watching _Max&Ruby_.

Sonic stretched out his arms and yawned, walking over to the cupboards as Tails began the "ABC" song, and pulled out a box of cereal. He knew that kids Tails' age could have cereal. Taking out two bowls, Sonic made them their breakfast. "…next time won't you sing with me?" Tails sung, finishing the last of the ABC song. Sonic placed both bowls on the table, then suddenly grabbed Tails having him drop the spoons. "Airplane!" Sonic smiled as he held Tails high. Making 'whoosing' noises, Sonic 'flew' Tails over to his seat at the table. Sonic was actually right about Tails liking planes, because he actually liked them, _a lot_. Once Tails was seated, Sonic took his seat and proceeded in eating his cereal. Breakfast went by quick and Tails wanted to continue his playing, but Sonic suggested a bit of TV.

Tails shrugged and agreed, walking over to the couch where the remote was. He switched on the TV and began to watch the morning cartoons that were on. Sonic sighed with relief as he took the two bowls over to the sink to wash them. Before he could turn on the water, the phone rang. Sonic raised a brow, never did he really have callers. Normally it would be one of his few friends, minus Knuckles who was isolated on that island of his, so that pretty much just left Amy. Sonic walked over, answering the phone. "Hello?"

Tails looked over at Sonic from his seat on the couch in the living room. He was watching Barney at the moment when the phone rang. Somewhat listened in as Sonic talked on the phone, but he didn't really say much. It was actually whoever was on the other line that was doing most of the talking.

"That's great news!" Sonic smiled, talking into the phone with Amy. It had been two weeks since they had gone shopping with Amy, and in those weeks, Amy had come over to babysit Tails as Sonic suddenly had to leave the house. Tails wondered why, but Amy said it was something 'big brothers' had to do. Tails missed Sonic in those long hours he would leave, but Sonic had always returned with a present for Tails being good. Tails now had three books and many other toys, including some building blocks he had a habit on leaving around the house. Tails thought maybe Sonic had to leave again as he usually left the house after he heard something on TV or got a call – but Sonic seemed happy this time, so it couldn't be.

Hanging up the phone, Sonic looked over to Tails. "Hey bro, wanna take another walk?" Tails tilted his head to the side, confused. Where were they going today? Tails was actually happy to go seeing as he hasn't been out of the house in two weeks, minus running around the front or backyard. "Why?" Tails asked. Sonic couldn't help but smile, walking over to Tails. He sat on the couch beside the kit, switching off the TV.

"Amy just told me that our friend, Miss Vanilla, had a child yesterday! You can have a friend now. Miss Vanilla is inviting everyone to her house to meet the kid. Wanna go?"

Tails looked at Sonic, trying to sort this out. He'd never met Miss Vanilla but has heard of her, and he's never had a friend before…well, minus now Sonic, Knuckles, and Amy. After a short term of thinking, Tails nodded. "I wanna go see the baby!"

Sonic grinned. "Great! But let's get cleaned up first. I washed your gloves so you can wear 'em now." Sonic said, getting up off the couch with Tails behind him.

The two walked their way to the Rabbit's home. Tails now wore his turquoise shirt with the big white T on it – it was his favourite shirt. He wore his old gloves that looked new along with those shoes Amy bought him. The two brothers had to walk back into town since Miss Vanilla lived in the civilization. Tails never really knew why his brother isolated himself, but seeing how loud it was in town, he thought he knew why – Sonic liked quiet. Probably for those naps he took in the afternoon.

There were many, many homes, but the two turned the corner to a much wider street that was less noisy. It was actually peaceful ignoring the limited cars and few children playing outside. The house was nothing big, but it was bigger than Sonic's home in the Mystic Ruins. The two walked down the walkway of the home leading up to the door.

"I wanna ring the doorbell!" Tails said happily. Tails enjoyed pressing doorbells, or anything that made tunes.

"Maybe we shouldn't buddy, what if the baby's sleeping?" Sonic said, reminding the kit. Tails thought a moment, placing a tiny gloved finger to his lips. "I guess I'll just knock." He said. Spinning his tails, Tails lifted himself to Sonic's height, then softly knocked before landing on Sonic's head for fun.

The door opened to reveal Amy. She smiled to the two brothers. "Hey guys, come in." Amy greeted, motioning the two to enter. Sonic walked in as Amy softly closed the door. Arriving inside, they noticed Knuckles was there already, sitting on the couch in the living room. Sonic reached on top of his head to grab Tails and pull him off, placing him on the couch. In the living room, a young pleasant rabbit sat on a rocking chair in the far corner of the room looking into the cradle next to her. The cradle was basket-looking, a white colour with a big bow at the top, pulling back the curtains. Tails looked at the mother rabbit with wide blue eyes. The rabbit was wearing a long plain, pink dress in slippers. She had big brown eyes that looked very friendly and caring. She looked over to Amy who walked over next to Sonic and Tails.

"Sonic, it's been awhile. It's nice to see you again." The rabbit smiled.

"It's good to see you too, Miss Vanilla." Sonic grinned. Miss Vanilla looked over to where Knuckles sat, or to who was sitting next to Knuckles. Her smile was warming, "Is that the little toddler Amy told me about?" Vanilla asked even if she clearly knew the answer. Sonic looked back at Tails, "Yep, this is my baby brother, Tails." Sonic introduced. "Tails, this is Miss Vanilla."

Tails looked at Miss Vanilla shyly. "Hi Miss Vanilla…" he said, holding one of his small smiles. Vanilla giggled at Tails, "Hello sweetie…how old are you?"

"Two…"

"Two? Good for you dear." Vanilla said, looking back at the cradle. There was a bit of fussing heard from within the cradle which got Tails curious. Vanilla looked over to her newly arrived guests, "Would you like to see the baby, Tails?" she asked. Tails nodded shyly. "Come," Vanilla said, gesturing for him to come over. Tails looked over to Sonic who nodded his head approvingly. Tails slid off the couch and walked over to the cradle that was way too high for him. Vanilla bent down in her chair and lifted Tails onto her lap, not being distracted by his twin tails since she was warned of it by Amy. Sonic came over too, being told by Amy the baby was just adorable and Knuckles even nodding. Sonic peered in as Tails did too.

Inside the cradle was a newborn rabbit. She was defiantly a girl, being dressed in a pink jumper. She had her mother's fur, but hers being much, _much _shorter. Tails looked at the baby, amazed. She was so cute. Suddenly, the baby moved, opening her eyes to reveal she had the same big brown eyes as her mother…friendly and caring…

"She's adorable," Sonic said. Vanilla smiled, saying 'thank you'. Tails looked over his shoulder to Vanilla, his eyes curious. "What's her name?"

"Cream," Vanilla replied.

"Pretty name," Tails grinned. He looked back into the cradle and mused, "A pretty name for a pretty baby." Vanilla held her smile, thinking to herself about that comment. Just then, another knock came at the door. "I'll get it," Amy offered, getting up off the couch and walking over to the door. Opening it, she welcomed whoever was there.

"Whose here?" Knuckles asked from his unmoved spot on the couch.

"Miss Vanilla, it's your friend." Amy noted, allowing whoever was there, into the house. In walked a young crocodile and a young chameleon that held a blanket. (I know in Sonic X Tails and Cream said they've never seen Vector before, but I thought that since Vanilla seemed to know him pretty well, they could've been friends now and even Vector said 'Our old pal Sonic' which means he'd known Sonic before and Sonic even knew their names, so…^^)

"Vector," Vanilla happily said, standing up but still holding Tails in her arms. The crocodile, called as 'Vector', came closer to the rabbit.

"Vanilla, as lovely as ever," Vector said politely. Vanilla managed a giggle. Vector looked to the kit in her arms, a little confused. "Erm, is this the kid?" he asked her. Vanilla began to chuckle once more, "Oh no Vector, this is Sonic's brother, Tails. My child is in the cradle." Vanilla explained having Vector become less confused. He nodded embarrassingly, rubbing the back of his neck. Vanilla looked over to the other child that had come with Vector. "Espio, you can sit down if you want." Vanilla informed.

"Thank you Miss Vanilla, but Charmy doesn't like that."

"Charmy?" Vanilla questioned.

"Who's Charmy?" Amy asked. Espio walked closer with the blanket in his arms. He turned it over slightly to show an infant bee. The bee's eyes were wide open, an amber colour as it had the smallest antennas on its head, but what caught most eyes was the little bee charm that was clipped on the visible parts of the bee's clothes, mostly covered by the blanket.

"Well, don't you two make a cute couple," Knuckles teased, pointing at Espio and Vector. The two stared daggers at the echidna which caused him to raise his hands in defeat. "Kidding!" (No, I don't like slash)

"Where'd you two get a baby anyway?" Sonic asked, walking over to get a better look at the infant.

"Actually, we found him at the park. He was curled in this blanket on the bench." Espio informed. "We couldn't find his parents after two days, so we kept him. We named him 'Charmy' because he had this little bee charm clipped on his blanket." Vector added. (The badge Charmy wears on his jacket anyone?^^)

"Bah!" Charmy whined. Espio struggled to keep hold on Charmy as the bee squirmed. "He's a real hyper kid." Espio stated the obvious.

Amy crossed her arms, "Why's everyone finding babies but me?"

"Hey yeah, so this is your brother?" Vector mused, pointing to Tails while eying Sonic. Sonic placed both hands on his hips. "That's right," he replied.

"Hi baby," Tails said, pointing to Charmy.

"Ah!" Charmy said, wriggling in Espio's arms. Espio sighed and just unwrapped Charmy from his blanket revealing him wearing a yellow footie which had the small bee charm. He also wore a small black helmet. Annoyed and a bit nervous with his squirming, the chameleon just placed the bee on the floor. Surprisingly, Charmy began crawling right away which was shocking since he seemed awfully young to do so.

"Um…a helmet?" Knuckles asked. Vector shrugged. "The kid is so hyper. Just yesterday, he ran right into the hallway table knocking over a lamp, papers, and the phone. I got him a helmet just to be safe." He explained. Knuckles just rolled his eyes and leaned back into the couch.

"Ama!" Cream whined. Vanilla walked over to the cradle and picked up her new daughter. She looked over to everyone in her living room. "I got some tables set up outside. Just a little celebration." She said sweetly. On her permission, everyone made their way outside.

The backyard was nicely spaced with soft green grass and a white fence boarding the property with a few bouncy balls lying around. There was a long patio set, set up near the door and few extra chairs. Placed on the table was a tray of treats and sandwiches. Vanilla sat down in one of the chairs with Cream in her lap. "Make yourselves at home." She smiled to her guests.

"Want something to eat, buddy?" Sonic asked Tails as he took a seat. Tails shook his head. "I wanna go play." He informed. "Alright, go play then." Sonic said. Tails nodded, running off into the yard. Although there wasn't much to do, he would make up his own game. Plus, Tails apparently had Charmy to play with him since he was already crawling.

Everything was calm. Charmy and Tails sat in the grass, rolling a ball back and forth to each other. The 'older' Mobians were sitting at the patio table, talking or eating. Cream was mainly the centre of the chatter as the rabbit girl looked around at everyone who surrounded her. Everything was peaceful. Even the sky was almost cloudless, allowing the sun to shine brightly.

"Cream is just adorable! I love her!" Amy said, looking down at the infant. Cream seemed to smile, reaching a hand out to the pink hedgehog.

"She looks just like her mother," Vector commented, eating a sandwich. Eating the last of it, he added, "Sweet and beautiful."

Vanilla let a small smile light her blushing cheeks. "Thank you, Vector."

"Oh Sonic! Isn't Cream the sweetest?" Amy asked, leaning rather dramatically on the blue hedgehog. Sonic nodded, "She sure is cute." He admitted.

"So Sonic," Vanilla began, "how is it with Tails?"

"It's fine. Easier now that I know what to do," Sonic replied.

"And you, Vector?" Vanilla asked.

"Wild but good thing is, the kid sleeps at night." Vector answered.

"Well, I think it's wonderful and perhaps when Cream is a bit older, Tails and Charmy can come over? The three could have play dates." Vanilla suggested.

"Yeah, OK." Sonic replied simply. "Tails could get out of the house more. He's always stuck at home because I'm either fighting or sleeping. And, uh, his tails prevent him from going in _public _places."

"Well I think he's a loveable child and I'd love him to come over." Vanilla said kindly.

As they engaged in the conversation, the sun vanished having darkness crawl over in an endless shade. Amy looked up, confused. "Huh? What's going on? Is it going to rain?" she wondered, looking up into the covered sky. Just looking into the sky, you saw the problem. There was an all-too familiar flying fortress right in front of the sun, blocking its rays. Sonic and Knuckles made fists, ready for who was exiting the fortress. A door to the fortress opened, having another familiar figure appear in his floating chair.

The figure was who we all know as Eggman. A bald professor with a potato nose and a frizzy mustache. He was overweight and sitting in one of his million creations. He smiled evilly, his eyes staring holes at his enemies behind those small blue lenses he wears. He laughed his 'ho-ho' Santa laugh seeing the Mobian's faces.

"Well, well, isn't it Sonic the Hedgehog. Hello _old friend_." The genius said, smiling sinisterly.

"Eggman," Sonic muttered. "What do you want?!"

"What do I want? Hmm…well, I want to build my Empire but some _rodent _won't allow me to do so, so I guess what I really want is…" the doctor trailed off, pressing one of the various buttons along his flying chair. A compartment opened having a metal hand come out. The hand formed into a fist and rose above Sonic. "To _destroy_ you!" Eggman finished as the fist came slamming down. Sonic leaped out of the way just in time before he could be squashed.

"Hey! Leave him alone!"

The doctor looked around, confused. But he then laid eyes on the kit. "Well, that's something you don't see every day." Eggman mused, easily spotting the twin tails. "Who are you?"

"Eggman, this is between you and me. No need to bring in my bro–"

"Bro? That _thing _is with you?"

Sonic clenched up. "Yes, you have a problem?" Sonic growled. He was surprised when Eggman's face lit up. He began laughing, and then turned over to look at Sonic. "Why no, I have no problem with that at all. In fact, this may solve _my _problem!" In a quick movement, the metal hand that was so recklessly attacking Sonic moments before, grabbed at Tails.

"Tails!" Sonic called as Tails himself was helplessly spinning his tails in a hopeless attempt to escape, but the metal hand held him firmly around the waist.

Eggman brought the kit closer so he could see more clearly. Seeing the kit was no more than a measly toddler made his hatching plan all the more easier. He turned to Sonic, trying his best to look threatening. "Now that I have your _brother_, I give you a choice. You can either hand over the Chaos Emeralds I know you have in your possession by sunset, or never see the kit again. You choose. Either way, I win!" Eggman cackled as he rose a few feet higher into the sky. He looked down again at the remaining Mobians and pondered silently. "Hmm," he thought aloud, "Perhaps only threatening _you_ isn't enough."

Eggman looked down to the others who were with Sonic. Seeing the most fearful one appeared to be the rabbit woman, he acted. Pressing another button, another hand emerged and came down, grabbing Vanilla around the waist. She held Cream close to her chest. Once Vanilla was at his eye-level, he eyed Cream explaining why the mother rabbit was being so fearful. With his own hands, he simply took Cream out of her arms. "No!" Vanilla cried, but with another press of a button, the metal hand opened and dropped her. Quickly, Knuckles caught Vanilla before she hit the ground and brought her safely to her feet. Eggman sinisterly looked at Sonic with a daring smile when a rubber ball hit him in the back of the head.

"Oof!" He muttered, angrily searching for who had done that. Eggman looked around and saw yet another baby who was the one responsible for throwing the object. With the hand he used to grab Vanilla, he used it to grab Charmy.

"Charmy!" Espio yelled out. "Please! Bring them back!" Vanilla cried. Eggman only carelessly brushed it off, not even bothering to hear they're pleads. He rose higher in his single craft, "Ho, ho! Now Sonic, give me your Chaos Emeralds or will these three never see another day!"

"Sonic! Help!" Tails screamed.

"Eggman!" was all Sonic could say. He yelled the doctor's name in anger as Eggman flew high over to his fortress and disappeared inside. The sun returned as the fortress flew off, with Tails, Cream and Charmy.

Vanilla sobbed, falling to her knees. "They took Cream!" she cried. "And Charmy," Vector sighed from his spot next to the sobbing rabbit, unbelieving what had just happened. "And we…couldn't do anything." Espio murmured, clearly depressed at what had just occurred. "If we were to take any fighting stance, it's a possibility we could've only put the infants more at risk."

"Tails…" Sonic whispered his voice fading as he still stared up into the sky where Eggman had just disappeared with two infants and _his_ brother. _Tails, _he thought angrily, _Eggman…I've put up with a lot, your robots, your exploding messages…but this time, you finally crossed the line._ He spun on his heels, looking towards the others. "I'm giving him my Chaos Emeralds."

"What?!" Knuckles bellowed. He grabbed Sonic by the shoulders firmly, "Do you not get it? It's all a trick! If you give him your Chaos Emeralds, he'll use them for his plan and we'll all die! Then what? Even if we get those kids back, they'll still die! And what if he was lying? We give him what he wants and he won't give the kids back. Then what? Once Eggman has those emeralds, we can't do anything."

Sonic shoved Knuckles off, looking as angry as ever. "Then what do _you _suggest we do?!"

"How 'bout you listen to _me?_"

Vanilla stopped crying a moment, hearing the strange source. Knuckles growled to the familiar voice he knew too well. They followed the voice to the roof, and sitting there was no other than the bat girl. Her wings were folded behind her back, sitting crossed legged, her eyes half-opened, smiling.

"Who're you?" Amy asked.

"She's a thief!" Knuckles blurted, growling at just the sight of the bat.

Using her flexibility, the bat pushed herself right off the roof, landing perfectly in front of everyone. She placed a hand on her hip, looking over at Knuckles. "Down boy," she grinned. Knuckles was about to grab her when Sonic came up. "You know how to help?"

"Call it a coincidence but I so happen to know Eggman well," the bat explained. "You're working for him!" Knuckles yelled at her. "Call it what you will," the bat replied, now dropping her smile, "but I can tell you this, he doesn't plan on giving you back the kids. Listen to me and you'll be thankful."

"Can…can you bring Cream back?" Vanilla asked, wiping away her tears.

"And Charmy?" Espio asked.

The bat nodded. "I can get you all three kids back, safe and sound, and with the emeralds Egghead has on that airship of his. All you have to do is listen to me." She explained, closing her eyes.

Knuckles crossed his arms, glaring daggers. "I don't trust you. Why would you help us if you're with Eggman?"

She glanced over at the echidna. "I jump from team to team. I work solo, anyway to win, I'll do it. In this case, I don't like Eggy's plan. It involves no reward for me even considering all I've done. So, I'm helping you now."

"So that's it! You want a reward!" Knuckles stated, catching what the bat was asking for.

Again, Sonic pulled Knuckles back. He looked seriously at the bat. She looked exactly as Knuckles had described her a couple weeks ago. Observing her over for a few seconds, Sonic asked, "What's your name?"

"Rouge,"

Another silence came on. Sonic remembered how Knuckles had said she could fight well, almost stealing the Master Emerald from him, a fight he barely won. Not to mention the way she was spying on them, being silent and blending in the shadows plus her flexibility…

"What do you want as a reward?"

This caused the bat, Rouge, to bring back her smile. "I said I'd bring you the emeralds Eggy has, plus the ones you have will equal to all seven. All I ask is for one…"

"What?!" Knuckles yelled.

Sonic held out a hand. "Deal," he said. She smiled, pleased in winning a promised reward this time. She shook the hedgehog's hand, repeating, "Deal."

**OoO! Eggman kidnapped our fav kiddies! Didn't I say Rouge would play a part? So, Sonic was put in a pickle here, choosing the kids, or Mobius. Lucky for them this sneaky bat is here, but as always, wanting a reward. What will happen next? You'll have to see in the next chapter, "A Walk into Disaster". Yes, next **_**chapter**_**. From this point on, I'll be putting that last few stories together as one considering I leave off at a cliffhanger and I'd be going against the guidelines if I posted them separate. The others were separate 'coz they had no cliffhangers. At least this'll be easier for some.**

**I hope this was good and OMG, so many babies! X3 **

**Now as usual, a sneak preview…**

"_Listen," Rouge began, looking over to face everyone. But something was different. Her already-known smirk was gone, and she held a serious glare in her eyes. Eggman's plan must then be real destructive, or Rouge just wanted that emerald. "Eggman expects me back soon, so I can give a free entering for you. But, not everyone can come – only a few. I'll simply distract the _genius_ and you grab what you need. It's simple; it's efficient, it's sure to work." Rouge said. She stared down everyone in the yard. Knuckles returned the heavy stare. Even if she shook on her promise and was even being held to an award, he wasn't so sure he could trust her._

**If you like this story, babies, two-tailed foxes, paranoid echidnas, brotherly stuff, animals, seeing Egghead fail, emeralds, or cookies, then leave a review! I don't accept flames, but I take constructive criticism. **

**Now is something I don't always do in my stories – disclaimers…(sigh, I often forget) All the characters used in this oneshot and in my past oneshots're all owned by Sega (sadly, I don't own Sonic the Hedgehog). I only own the plot of my stories. Special thanks to CharmyXcream14 for helping me with baby Charmy! We now know why he has a helmet (LOL) Another thing I own is how everyone meets in my stories and the reason for Charmy's name. (I couldn't resist, I been thinking that for the longest time)XD**

**R&R, and thx for supporting! You guys rock! ^^**


	2. A Walk into Disaster

**Hi everyone! As I said, here's the next chapter to the story. I'd like to thank TatlTails, peachy author, HealingHearts24 and UKsLaster for their kindness, supporting reviews, and constructive criticism. Thank you guys! You rock! Here's some cookies! I can tell everyone is irritated with Eggman right now for kidnapping Tails, Cream and Charmy, **_**sssooooooo**_**…after this chapter, you are all free to pick a weapon of your choice and teach him a lesson ^^ (LOL I'm so nice) **

**A Walk into Disaster**

Knuckles couldn't believe what he was hearing. Did Sonic actually just agree into giving that no-good bat a Chaos Emerald? It must be true because they shook hands on it. Knuckles couldn't believe this. After recovering from his shock, he looked at the two as they released each other's hands.

"Alright _Rouge_," Knuckles said, putting an emphasis on her name, "why do ya want an emerald so badly?"

Rouge turned her back to him, one hand on her hip while the other just barley hovered over her chest. "Isn't it obvious redhead? I'm going to make a necklace out of it."

Knuckles face was blank. Everyone there watching what he'd do, and what he did was just explode. He shook his fist widely, his face going redder along his muzzle. "WHAT! A NECKLACE! ARE YOU CRAZY?!" he yelled.

Rouge smiled, keeping her calm composer. "Or a ring…by the way, I look great in red." She said, giving a hint that she was keeping her hopes on getting the red emerald.

Knuckles simply lost it. "YOU'RE BATTY!" he screamed. "YOU WANT ONE OF THE MOST POWERFUL ITEMS IN ALL OF MOBIUS, JUST TO MAKE JEWELERY?!" Knuckles shouted, furious now of the deal. Rouge shrugged casually. "Hey, ya know the saying 'a diamonds a girl's best friend'? Well guess what," she turned around, facing the echidna, "an emeralds mine."

Knuckles clenched his fists. He seemed ready to just attack Rouge right there and then, and he probably would have if Sonic and Espio didn't pull him back. "Knux, c'mon, she's offering to help us with Egghead. The least you can do is _pretend _to trust her." Sonic said.

"If she knows a way around Eggman's plan, I say we listen." Espio added reminding everyone that Rouge was their only hope in getting the three young Mobians back and Eggman's emeralds with them being able to keep theirs. Knuckles lowered his fists and he sighed in defeat. "Fine," he muttered, "but I'm doing this _only _so Eggman won't have any emeralds."

Rouge just brushed it off, uncaring. "Whatever Knuckie," she answered, nicknaming the echidna with what she knew of his name thanks to Sonic. Vanilla stood up from her kneeling position, walking over to Rouge. Her hands were held together in front of her mouth, her tear-stained eyes looked somewhat hopeful. "Please bring Cream back…" Vanilla begged. Rouge couldn't help but feel sorry for the new mother, and she never really felt sorry for anyone. Rouge nodded as if silently saying "I'll bring her back".

The silence that settled upon the backyard was shattered by Amy who stepped forward. "OK, what's the plan?" Amy asked. "And whatever it is, I wanna help! Nobody, _especially_ Eggman doesn't threaten _my _friends without getting a full-on mallet in the face!" Amy informed, proving being serious by pulling out her Piko Piko Hammer. She began to swing it around with anger, just missed by hitting the two ten-year-olds.

"Hey Amy, watch where ya swing that!" Knuckles muttered from his fallen position, having had past experience with being hit with the ridiculously large hammer. "You could seriously hurt yourself with that." Espio stated as he got up from the ground, "Or _us_." Amy embarrassingly hid the hammer behind her back. "Sorry, sometimes I get carried away."

"Listen," Rouge began, looking over to face everyone. But something was different. Her already-known smirk was gone, and she held a serious glare in her eyes. Eggman's plan must then be real destructive, or Rouge just wanted that emerald. "Eggman expects me back soon, so I can give a free entering for you. But, not everyone can come – only a few. I'll simply distract the _genius _and you grab what you need. It's simple; it's efficient, it's sure to work." Rouge said. She stared down everyone in the yard. Knuckles returned the heavy stare. Even if she shook on her promise and was even being held to an award, he wasn't so sure he could trust her.

"Sounds good," Sonic finally said. He looked over to his friends, tearing his gaze from the bat. "Who's coming?"

"I'm coming!" Amy informed. "I'll teach that Eggman a lesson!"

Nervously, Sonic agreed and turned to anyone else. "I'll come," Espio offered. "My invisibility could come in handy."

Knuckles growled. "I'll go too."

"I'll stay here with Vanilla," Vector said, as the tear-stained rabbit waved goodbye to the others. They walked through Vanilla's house, exiting through the front door. Although, right before Rouge could follow the three out the door, someone grabbed her arm and pulled her back. Knuckles glared deadly daggers towards her. "Get this straight," he whispered but in a snarling way, "I don't trust you. I'm coming along to make sure you don't pull any strings on us. How do I know you're not going to actually _tell _Eggman we're there? That this is all a trick?"

"That's the thing Knuckie," she said, roughly ripping her arm loose from his grip. "You don't." Then she proceeded out the door, flapping her wings so she hovered merely a few inches over their heads. At the edge of Vanilla's property, the four flightless Mobians looked up towards Rouge. She studied the sky until she spotted what she was eyeing for.

"I see Eggman's ship from here." She noted, turning over to face the boys and Amy. All at that moment, she returned to her smirk. "You boys better not weigh too much considering I have to drag all three of you up there."

"C'mon before Eggman drives off again." Amy said.

"Don't worry Ames," Sonic spoke, "Eggman is expecting the emeralds. He won't go _too _far." Linking hands, Rouge took hold of Sonic in one hand and Amy in the other with Knuckles and Espio holding on. Rouge grunted at the weight but easily overcame it. Ignoring the extra pounds and the muttering below, Rouge kept an eye sealed on the fortress, finding it coming closer and closer.

**xxxxx**

"Ho! Ho! Ho!" Eggman cackled. "I finally did it! I'll have enough energy to power up my _Destruction EGG! _Sonic will never let any innocent stand biers take the fall for his actions. I'll be expecting him within the hours…with _my _Chaos Emeralds…" the chubby man continued to laugh at his own devious plan, clearly pleased with himself.

"You're a bad man!"

Eggman raised a brow, looking over to where the three "brats" were being held. They were currently in the corner of the room in a wide tube that came from the ceiling and connected with the floor. The scientist had placed the twerps in there due to only after five minutes of them being on his ship, he was ready to drop them out the window with the whining and crying and screaming and for the bee…pulling his mustache.

Eggman was standing over to his brilliant creation which he had called the _Destruction EGG_. The machine looked highly explosive, wires of all colours and sorts were intertwining with each other, hanging loose or tightly wrapped around another. Buttons with numbers rounded the machine's surface with a screen. The screen presently read:

_**Destruction **_

_**E**__nergy _

_**G**__aining _

_**G**__ear_

_*Please Insert Password*_

Circling the machine was the most interesting thing. Small holes that were closed off with clear glass circled the surface, and inside two of the glass-covered holes were two glowing gems – a red and a yellow one. Nothing was held in the remaining five holes, but the gems were beautiful and what got Tails' the most was, he seen them before.

Eggman looked over to the kit, stuck in the tube with the other two infants. He fully turned around to face Tails, his glare scaring the kit slightly. "What did you say?"

Tails was frightened, but he was also angry. Angry that this man had kidnapped him, threatening his brother, and now hearing he was planning something evil. His scared appearance quickly was replaced by an angered one. "You're bad! Kidnapping us and now expecting my brother to give you his gems. And worst of all, you're not keeping your promise!" Tails shouted.

He heard Eggman say he wasn't returning him, Cream or Charmy to those two dimwitted robots in the hallway. Once arriving, in those five minutes before they were locked in this tube, two robots that were cleaning around had asked why Eggman had them and he simply replied it was a trick for Sonic. That's when Charmy pulled on his mustache which caused Eggman to yowl. It was all a trick…Tails would never see Sonic again…

Instead of shooting a comment back or yelling at Tails, Eggman…_smiled? _He walked closer to the tube, "You know of these, um, _gems?_" Eggman questioned, picking that out of Tails' shout. Tails went silent. A couple days ago, Tails was looking for Sonic. He wandered into Sonic's room to see if he was napping – but he wasn't. He's sighed, deciding to check outside, but something at the corner of his eye caught sight of something…_shiny_. Curious of course, Tails went closer to where he spotted the glint, which was under Sonic's bed. Kneeling down, Tails looked under Sonic's bed and spotted the shine again. He reached out under, grabbing something rough. Crawling back, Tails pulled out what appeared to be a rough burlap sack. Again with the curiosity and more so not understanding what it was doing there, Tails opened the bag. Inside were five, radiance, stunning gems. He even memorized their colours – white, green, blue, cyan and violet. Shortly after discovering them did Sonic come into the room.

"_Hey buddy, what're you doing in my ro–" Sonic began to ask but didn't finish as Tails turned to look at him, revealing the bag Sonic temporarily kept the Chaos Emeralds in. He had been holding onto them until he retrieved the two emeralds that Eggman had stolen from him in their last battle. Sonic quickly zipped over, taking the bag from Tails and closing it securely. _

"_Sonic, what're those jewels doing under your bed? They look a lot like the giant gem Knuckles guards." Sonic knew Tails was smart and still didn't want him to uncover the secret about Eggman. He had been doing his best to hide it, but now what? _

"_Um, these're Amy's. I was holding them for her." Sonic lied._

Probably by the look on his face, Sonic realized he didn't buy it. To prove his lie, Sonic even invited Tails along as he went to drop off the bag of emeralds at Amy's house, but Tails had overheard as Sonic explained the whole thing to Amy and why she needed to hold onto them until he returned to get them. But Tails had found them once again a couple days later when he climbed up into the attic, wondering where the door in the ceiling lead too. That was when he knew the gems were more, but he didn't ask Sonic this time. If Sonic was trying so hard to hide these jewels from him, maybe he should forget he ever saw them.

Tails gulped at the doctor, finding it suddenly harder to speak. "I, uh, _maybe _have seen them before…" Tails said, his words coming out shakier than he wanted. Eggman thought this over, "Hmm, have you now?" he hummed. He then smiled down to the young kit, leaning over to try and match up eye-levels. "You seem rather intelligent for your age. How about I offer you a deal?"

Tails eyed the chubby man with the squirrel-like fuzzy thing on his upper lip. He cocked his head ever so slightly to the side in a somewhat confused manner. "What offer?" he questioned, having no trust in this claimed scientist.

"If you tell me where Sonic's keeping those _'gems' _that you saw, I promise that I will let you go." Eggman presented.

Again Tails eyed him. It was a lie. He may have said one thing, but his body language said another. Living on his own for a while, Tails had learned one or two things about reading people. Even if they said nothing, glancing at the way they moved or how they did what they did, he was able to read them. The way Eggman said this and the way he smiled, he was lying. "You're lying," Tails said sharply. "You're going to cheat me out of it."

"Clever boy," Eggman mused, one hand stroking his mustache. "You saw right through my plan…but it's too late for you. Once Sonic gives me those emeralds, I'll engage them into my machine and it will activate. Luckily for me, I will be safely in another room for when this is activated, oh fox boy, this whole room is going to explode with power." Eggman began to laugh as he walked over to his beauty of a device. He stroked the buttons that held the numbers. Tails began to soundlessly whimper. Eggman looked over to the kit and laughed all the more, "Sonic has tried to protect you of me I can tell," Eggman teased, opening the only exit in the room by punching a code into a small box on the wall. "But by doing that, he's only endangered you. Enjoy your last few minutes kid because with Sonic's emeralds or not, I still have power, but you…you only have so much air." And then he left, laughing.

Tails leaned his head on the tube, a feeling of defeat. He looked up when he felt a pulling on his shirt. Looking over, he saw Cream and Charmy. Cream was sitting right beside him, a hand loosely holding his shirt in a tugging motion. Charmy was behind her, also looking over at him. Tails had no response to this, except one. "Don't worry, Sonic's coming. He always does."

**xxxxx**

Rouge landed on the fortress letting go of her _tagalongs_. They stood up, getting as good of balance as they could. "OK, so we're here, but how do we get in?" Amy asked. Rouge walked over a few steps until she came to an engraved circle in the fortress' hood. Tapping it lightly with her heel, you heard the echo indicating it was hollow. To prove it further, Rouge opened it. "This is an emergency escape hatch in case the ship ever lands in the water." She said, jumping in, landing a perfect ten leaving the 'stowaways' to the ladder. Once they were all in and the hatch was sealed, Rouge cleared the plan with everyone.

"Do you know where Tails is?" Sonic asked.

Rouge nodded. "Unless Eggy switched on me, they should be down the hall here, first door on your right – but beware the alarms. I'll keep Eggy away long enough for you to run." Rouge said calmly. She was about to leave, but quickly reminded with her signature smile, "Don't forget my reward." then flew off ahead.

"I'm going for Tails, I'm sure Charmy and Cream will be there too," Sonic said.

"I'm going with you." Amy offered, placing a securing hand on his shoulder.

"I'm going to watch our jewel-eyeing friend. I don't trust her and I'm sure this is a trick." Knuckles muttered, eyeing the direction where Rouge had gone.

"Are you sure you're not just crushing on her?" Amy asked having Espio crack a grin. Knuckles muzzle went red with blush. If there were no alarms, he would've screamed at the six-year-old for even _thinking _such a thing.

"I'm going to shut down all alarms and security. No doubt will the Chaos Emeralds be somewhere under lock and we won't get them if the wires are hooked." Espio informed.

"Alright, let's go." Sonic said breaking the conference as they all split up about the ship. Espio turned himself invisible to easily miss all the aiming cameras with detectable lasers. He crawled about the walls, peering in each room. Eventually, he came around a room where all the camera screens were. He saw Amy and Sonic walking about the halls and realized he needed to shut these cameras off before Eggman saw them. He walked over to an unusually large keyboard and began to type around in the system. Computers were defiantly _not _his specialty, but one thing he _did _know was how to crash the system.

Rouge walked into the front room of the whole airship where the controls were, and where Eggman sat facing out the incredibly large window to behold the irreplaceable view. Unknowingly did she have any intention that a certain echidna was standing right outside the room's doorframe, eavesdropping.

Eggman spotted the twelve-year-old step into the room. "Well, well, look who decided to show up. I thought I told you to stay on board as I confronted Sonic. Where did you go?"

"Why so curious?" Rouge asked simply, strolling over to the large window.

Eggman scowled slightly. "I told you before Rouge, I don't approve of your attitude. Now tell me where you were."

Rouge glanced up to the fat man sitting back lazily in his chair. She looked stern at him. "What do you care what happens to me?"

"First of all, besides me of course, you're the only one on this ship that has any form of intelligence, well, except for that fox kid now."

"Excuse me doctor," a metal-like voice erupted, "but we resent that." Close by to where Eggman sat were two robots. One was a tall, lean robot who was built out of a gold metal material as his companion was a short, round silver metal robot. Both were new creations and henchmen of the doctor. Rouge often teased them how they were so pathetic at times and boy did their bolts steam at her. They disliked Rouge more than their rusting gears.

Eggman looked over, somewhat annoyed that the robots had just interfered in his questioning. "Not like you brainless 'bots have ever even had a true brain so don't complain!" Eggman scowled. "But doctor, you were the one who created us. With a high IQ we should be in a close second."

"Listen here, you will no longer question me or I'll disassemble you! Understand?"

The two 'bots 'gulped' and nodded their heads nervously. Rouge decided to change the subject back before a fight began between Fatty and Dumbots. "Hey Eggy, what were you saying 'bout that fox kid?" she asked, reminding him of their talk, "You said he's smart? Do tell."

"I'll tell you once you tell me where you've been." Eggman reminded, not forgetting to drop the topic. Rouge sighed in defeat. "Alright Eggy, ya got me." Knuckles listened in more closely. "I _was _on the ship, but quickly got bored, so I went for a short flight but got distracted by a jewelry store. I suppose I let myself get caught up in the shinning sight – you know, since _you're _not giving me anything I have to get it myself."

"I'll give you your reward in time. Be patient Rouge,"

"Seems like I been patient for almost two years."

"In time…and for your question, you need to know nothing of the kit." Eggman said roughly, keeping all his ideas under strict guard. "Speaking of the kit, what're you doing with him and the other brats?" Rouge asked even if she knew very well what was going to happen to them if this plan failed.

"Rouge, I know you were here when I explained this. What are you up to?" Eggman asked, raising an eyebrow. Rouge just turned her back to him, looking out over the horizon. "I just wanna know why you grabbed those worthless kids when ya could've grabbed Sonic himself."

"You know he was too quick, and my original plan was to grab the pink one, but then I saw the babies…" Eggman drawled, smiling evilly in remembrance of his plan. It was full-proof and nothing could go wrong. Knuckles gave up. Rouge really wanted that emerald, for what other reason wouldn't she give them away? He doubted she actually _wanted _to help them. He decided it was time to go find Sonic and forget this.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" Knuckles spun around to the robotic hand on his shoulder to face the two robots that had caught sight of him.

**xxxxx**

_All systems shutting down…please wait…_

Espio read off the computer screen. He had entered into the open computer's files that were stupidly labeled. Once he clicked onto them, all he did was click the "off" button. He watched as the computer checked off all alarms and cameras.

_Shutting down complete 100% successful…_

There, he had done his part, now he only hoped Sonic and Amy had found the room. Quickly, Espio placed the keyboard back where he grabbed it off of and turned invisible. He had to go find Knuckles now and hope that Eggman didn't realize that none of his security was working.

**xxxxx**

Sonic and Amy arrived to the room that Rouge directed them too. The hallway was longer than they expected and the room was difficult to find considering all the doors looked the same as the next. Thanks to Rouge, they came to the said door. Opening it, they arrived to their destination. Inside, the room was dark with dim lights, but the most power of light was coming from some weird machine in the centre of the room, glowing with two Chaos Emeralds. Forgetting the Chaos Emeralds, Sonic spotted Tails, Cream and Charmy.

"Tails!" Sonic yelled-whispered, dashing over to the tube. He placed his gloved hands on the outside of the tube as Tails looked up at him. "Sonic…you _did _come."

"Of course buddy," Sonic smiled. He noticed how even Cream and Charmy seemed to smile at seeing the familiar blue hedgehog with them. Amy walked over having Cream get all the more excited since Amy really was someone she knew. Sonic turned to Amy and stood up. "How do we get them out?"

Amy pulled out her hammer, a determined look on her face. "I'm smashing the side to make a hole."

**xxxxx**

Eggman was furious at seeing Knuckles aboard his ship. "You're with Sonic!" he growled. "How'd you get in here? I have a security system to all openings!" Eggman mumbled angrily. Knuckles waited for Rouge to say something, but she said nothing, standing in silence behind Eggman. Being held by the robots, Eggman walked over towards a control box near the doorway. He tapped in a password and switched on a handle. But a speaker said, _"All systems have been shut down." _

"WHAT?!" Eggman freaked. He breathed crossly for a moment, and then ran out of the room. Dragging along Knuckles, the robots followed with Rouge flying close behind. Eggman ran into the control room where he saw all his cameras down. Unknowingly was Espio still there, invisible in the far corner. He spotted Knuckles captured and Rouge standing aside. Eggman grabbed the keyboard and began to madly type away on his computer.

_All systems back on… _

The screen read and one by one did the cameras come on, including the camera in the room where his Destruction EGG and prisoners were. He spotted Amy holding her hammer high and watched as she brought it down, smashing half of the tube into nothing more but shattered useless pieces that littered the floor. With all systems back on, an alarm began to beep catching Amy and Sonic off-guard.

"I don't understand, Espio shut it down," Sonic said to himself. Suddenly, the only exit in that room slammed shut and locked. Yes now the kids were free of the tube, but they were all locked in a doomed room.

Eggman grabbed a speaker that sat near his computer, using it to talk to Sonic. Sonic was flabbergasted when hearing Eggman's voice on the speaker. _"Hello Sonic," _Eggman said, _"Since you're here, I assume you have my Chaos Emeralds."_

"Eggman," Sonic growled. "You're not getting my Chaos Emeralds today Egghead! And now I'm taking yours and getting out!"

"_Good luck with that Hedgehog. Even with two Chaos Emeralds, I have power to at least destroy a quarter of Mobius. That's a start for Eggman Land I guess…but you're doomed. I ordered you for sunset and I programmed my Destruction EGG to start itself at sunset…which is right now! Good luck escaping for within a few minutes, that room will explode along with your plan. And I thought you'd like to know I have your little friend here. Your only exit it blocked and you have no rings in your reach, goodbye 'old friend', ha! Ha! Ha!" _

Eggman signed off. Tails was frightened as was Amy who held Charmy and Cream closely. Sonic was plain furious. Eggman has them cornered. "Sonic! What do we do?!" Amy asked worriedly. Sonic looked around the room, spotting a small box with buttons next to the door, almost like a passcode. That was the _only _way out. "Sonic!" Amy called, "The Destruction EGG is counting down! It's going to explode!"

Sonic ran over to the machine and tried to smash the glass to pull out the emeralds, but they were sealed. Every blow he gave bounced off. It was no use, they really were trapped. The screen on the machine said something about a password that contained the number. What did that even mean?

"This needs some type of code, but I don't know what!" Sonic muttered, trying to think what Eggman could use for this stupid device. "Sonic?"

Sonic ignored it, thinking.

"Sonic?"

What word needed a number? What would Eggman even use?

"Sonic, listen to me!"

Sonic opened his eyes and looked over to the two-year-old at his feet. He couldn't help but feel that this was his fault that Tails was trapped her along with his friends. If he never dragged them into his rivalry with Eggman, they could be safe somewhere and not have their minutes being counted. Seeing that pleasing look in Tails eyes, he decided to listen. "What is it, Tails?"

"Sonic, I know." Tails said softly. _Knows? Knows what? _Sonic asked in thought. And as if Tails read his mind, he answered, "I know about everything. When Amy came over to watch me, you were fighting _him_, the round man. Those gems I found in the house, they were those Chaos Emeralds everyone's fighting over. And most importantly, I know how to get _out _of here."

Sonic stared blankly. Was he hearing things? He always knew Tails was smart, smart for a kid his age, but this was beyond how smart Sonic actually thought he was. Without an answer, Tails spun his tails and flew over to the buttons on the machine. "Eggman wouldn't stop talking about those Chaos Emeralds and they power this machine, and the password is a word that's a number. I counted the emeralds in this room and the ones I found at our house in the attic…" Sonic felt his mouth slightly open hearing that Tails found where he had hid the emeralds after supposedly returning them to Amy. "That's seven – seven is a word and a number." To prove it, Tails punches in the word.

S.E.V.E.N

_Password Accepted_

The machine's process stopped as it completely shut down. All the glass seals opened allowing Sonic to grab the two Chaos Emeralds. He stared at the emeralds, then back at Tails. He figured it out. "Sorry to interrupt," Amy apologized, coming over with the two infants, "but we're still stuck in the room."

"I can get us out." Tails assured. Using his tails to propel himself once more, he flew over to the door. He pressed a couple buttons on the box and the door opened. Sonic and Amy gaped. "Tails…how'd you know that?" Sonic asked. Tails smiled, looking over to his big brother, "When Eggman was talking to me I heard him when he punched in the code. I memorized the beep pattern. He pressed six buttons, so I pressed the six buttons that matched the pattern."

"Uh…good job buddy," Sonic said, giving a thumbs-up even in his shocked expression. Tails just giggled and flew out the opened door.

"Curses!" Eggman swore, seeing how easily they had escaped. "That stupid fox was smarter that I thought…he's ruining my plan and he's no more but a measly toddler!"

"Ack!"

"Ugh…"

Eggman spun around hearing the faint sounds of his robots. To his surprised, his two robots were lying on the floor, a slight dent in the back of their heads. Knuckles simply shrugged. Eggman turned to Rouge as she was the only person in the room to do it. Right when he was going to accuse her, Espio revealed himself unintentionally by a sneeze.

"You!" Eggman huffed.

"Quickly, let's go," Knuckles said, kicking down the door in a sprint. Espio chased after him as they ran to go find where Sonic and Amy were. Eggman grabbed Rouge's arm and pulled her out of the room along with him. "Get them!" he ordered, pushing the bat forward. She stopped dead in her tracks having stopped Eggman too. She looked over to Eggman, her eyes a darker shade.

"Listen here Eggy," Rouge said. "I have put up with you for almost two years now. I've gotten no reward in return. But now I'm done. You wanna catch that Hedgehog, you can do it yourself! I quit!" she stated, keeping her calm composer. She delicately turned her back to him and crossed her arms.

"You can't quit! I fire you! You've never done anything correctly resulting in no reward! I want you off this ship within the hour or else!"

"Or else what? You'll lock me in an explosive room? I see how well that worked." Rouge mocked.

Eggman angrily muttered, silently swearing. "Just leave!" he ordered, pushing her out of his way as he chased after where the echidna and chameleon had gone off in.

Knuckles and Espio met up with the others, back to where they had begun. The roof's hatch was wide open, air pouring through due to the ship in movement. "Charmy!" Espio said relieved seeing the baby bee in Amy's arms. Amy smiled handing over the baby to him. Charmy seemed happy to be reunited with someone _he _knew, babbling with a wide toothless smile. With Cream in her hold, Amy began to climb up the ladder. "C'mon! We have to get outta here!"

"Oh no you don't!" Eggman's voice cried. The fat genius was coming up from the hallway. In a rush, they all climbed up to the roof of the flying fortress. Sonic, who was the last up, managed to get out just as Eggman reached out for him – but that didn't stop him. He too followed up the ladder knowing that there was no way they could get off his ship; none of them had the ability to fly. "I've got them now…" he cackled sinisterly. He arrived to the roof and as he predicted, they had no idea how to get off as they were all peering over the edge of the ship seeing how high up they truly were.

"Nowhere to run to now, eh Sonic?" Eggman mused.

Sonic mentally swore at himself for not fully thinking this through. He could easily jump off knowing he'd survive, but he couldn't leave his friends…or his brother. Sonic turned to Eggman. "Stop right there Egghead!"

"Give me back my Chaos Emeralds! I stole them fair and square."

"Stealing is wrong," Tails informed. "It's bad and its Sonic's job to stop anyone who's bad."

"You, you little _brat! _You foiled my plan! You ruined it all! You were smart, but not smart enough." Eggman said moodily. He for one had enough of Sonic's little…"sidekick". That stupid kit had gotten him wrong, and now he will give payback.

"There was one problem in your plan," Tails said strongly, even if he was behind Sonic.

"And what was that?" Eggman inquired curiously even if the sarcasm was overflowing in his voice.

"You talk too much! You put yourself ahead of your own plan, you calculated it all. You made strong predictions, but in _this _equation, answers will vary." Tails said. That broke the camel's back. Eggman ran over towards the Mobians in rage. But once again, he put himself before his plan. Sonic grabbed Tails and moved back a few, and in his run, Eggman slipped. His footing was unbalanced and he fell over off the side. Eggman grabbed onto the edge of the roof on the fortress.

"Sonic! Help!" Eggman cried.

"Fat chance Eggman." Sonic shot back. "Sonic, we have to help him." Tails said, running off from his side towards the edge where the scientist was. Sonic looked at Tails, and once again, he couldn't find himself saying no to those blue orbs. "Okay," he agreed. "We'll help him."

The two walked over to where Eggman was. They both reached down, ready to grab Eggman to haul him up. Just as Tails was about to help though, the horror on Eggman's face was wiped off, replaced by an evil-like grin. In a movement that was so quick that only Sonic's feet could match up to, Eggman grabbed Tails hand, the one the kit was reaching out for him, and he pulled Tails right off the roof of the fortress. Pulling Tails so roughly, the fox unexpectedly smacked the back of his head against a part of the ship having Tails black-out. Once Tails was unconscious, Eggman let go and dropped him.

"Tails!" Sonic screamed.

**Cliffhanger! I'm so niceX) OhMyGawsh! I make Eggman sound so evil! That's my way with villains I guess, I make them a tad too evil then what they actually are. Oh well, adds to the story. Well, I hope this chapter wasn't as confusing as I think it was and that it was understandable. If you enjoyed it or worrying what's happened to Tails, review! They inspire me to work faster. I love reviews ^^ **

**Another sneak preview for the next and final "A Walk" oneshot…**

_Sonic couldn't believe it. Tails had offered to help the very man that had threatened to kill them all off, and as he did so, Eggman truly didn't need any help. Grabbing his brother, knocking him unconscious and then dropping him down below. He was unable to fly, and he was falling fast. Eggman cackled his annoying Santa laugh, "You better hurry Sonic, he's dropping like a rock." _

**What's going to happen? Sonic can't fly! (Well, not in his current form) And Tails is incapable of flight at the moment. Wanna know what happens? Read on! Love you all! Bye ;D **


	3. A Walk in the Dark

**Hey everyone! This is the last chapter to my A Walk series! I just wanna say thanks to those who reviewed. It means a lot to know that y'all continued to read the series 'til now. Thank you ^^ Eggman ain't here at the moment…some'a did a number on him so he couldn't make it LOL. But whatever, nobody really cares for 'im – now, to the story!**

**A Walk in the Dark**

Eggman laughed to his success in gluing his nemesis into a situation. While Sonic was paralyzed to what had just occurred, Eggman climbed back up onto the fortress' roof, not even struggling. He was never in any real risk of falling; he just needed to make them believe he was. He was originally going to grab Sonic, but grabbing the kit seemed like a much better idea, and everything worked well when the toddler hit his head and blacked out. Everything was finally falling into place. Eggman looked over to Sonic, still looking torn in how he was going to save his "brother".

Sonic couldn't believe it. Tails had offered to help the very man that had threatened to kill them all off, and as he did so, Eggman truly didn't need any help. Grabbing his brother, knocking him unconscious and then dropping him down below. He was unable to fly, and he was falling fast. Eggman cackled his annoying Santa laugh, "You better hurry Sonic, he's dropping like a rock."

Without a sign, Sonic suddenly glanced at Eggman with anger. He only had two Chaos Emeralds in his possession at the moment…if only he had brought the rest. He could've transformed into Super Sonic and saved Tails. But obviously, he hadn't because they hadn't thought the whole plan through, partly his fault. All he could think then was how furious he was at Eggman and didn't even care what happened as long as he retrieved what was taken.

"You Egghead!" Sonic shouted, a light black aura forming around Sonic's blue quills.

"Don't bother Sonic, and instead save your breath to admit that you lost. In a few close minutes, that stupid kit will crash into the ground, and you all have no way of escaping this aircraft which makes it easier for me…and once I grab those two emeralds from you, I will proceed with my plan! Admit it Sonic, you have no plan. You're done, and I won." Eggman cackled.

Sonic wouldn't admit it. He wouldn't ever admit it even if it was a complete obvious situation. He won't lose to the doctor, not ever. And he wasn't going to start now. He clutched his fists together. He was literally about to transform into Dark Sonic and fight Old Egghead when Amy called him.

"Sonic!" she screamed. Thinking maybe one of Eggman's robots had climbed up and grabbed her and Cream, he spun around but to only see Cream was still safely in her arms and there were no robots in sight. Amy pointed to somewhere below with wide, amazed eyes. She cried out, "Look!"

Sonic looked to where Amy was gesturing to and saw none other than Rouge. Rouge had dived from one of the fortress' many exits. Her wings were folded down flat against her back, her arms together pointing straight ahead and her legs were in a similar position behind her. The position she was in resulted in gravity to pull her down faster. Sonic's anger drained as he also stared in awe, having a clue what the bat was attempting. Even Eggman was staring, but his look was a mixture of anger, wonder, and betrayal.

Rouge eyed straight ahead, tears prickling her eyes due to the force of the wind by her fall. Gravity was pulling her down, but not fast enough. By the circumstances, Rouge leaned her upper body further. The speed increased a noticeable change in her fall. The fox was coming into view. He got closer and closer until finally, Rouge grabbed him. With the fox kit safely in her arms, Rouge shot out her wings like a parachute and quickly, the force of gravity was incapable to pulling her down. The fox was still knocked out, a bruise already forming on the back of his head, but she had saved him. Rouge began to flap her wings, lifting her and the cub back up to the fortress.

"She – she saved him!" Amy said, pointing out what had just occurred.

"She jumped ship to save Tails," Espio whispered to himself. Knuckles had nothing to say. But he felt a little voice at the back of his mind telling him he was wrong. He hadn't trusted Rouge.

"Why that bat…" Eggman muttered, clearly fumed that one of his minions had just betrayed him. Sonic just smiled. Rouge wasn't joking when she said she'd jump to whatever side. He couldn't believe that Rouge had just saved his brother. Sonic now didn't even feel any regret in later having to give up one of the Chaos Emeralds to the bat.

Rouge arrived to the side of the ship, Tails in her arms. Rouge came over, landing right next to Sonic, handing him the kit. Tails eyes began to flutter open, in a far daze. He blinked a couple times before looking up at Sonic. "Sonic…?" he asked, confused. Sonic beamed, hugging Tails.

"Rouge, you deceived me!" Eggman pointed out.

"You _fired _me," Rouge said calmly, placing a hand on her hip. "I don't work for ya no more, so who do you care?"

Eggman was now seething. Everything was working so well! How could it have just collapsed on him like this? He had everyone in the clutches of his palms. He looked over to the Mobians before him, his eyes snapping behind those small blue lenses. He couldn't help but _know _that his plan had failed because of that fox. He should have just gone with his original plan and kidnap the pink hedgehog. It could have worked out. Now what was he to do? His plan was foiled, in ruins. The worst he could do was push them off his airship.

"We have to leave _now_," Rouge said, keeping her tranquil composer.

"Why?" Amy asked.

Rouge shifted slightly. "Those little TVs of Eggy's, I placed some in the control room…once they blow, those controls will too and so will our chances to getting away." She said. Everyone instantly tensed up hearing that. Sonic had received those little exploding TVs for messages before and even if they never did more then cover him in soot, a couple of them together could cause an explosion that could do destruction – especially in the control room.

"How're we gonna get out of here?" Amy panicked.

"I don't know if I can carry everyone…" Rouge sighed. "It was difficult enough before."

"We have to figure something out!" Knuckles stated. "I'll try again," Rouge offered, "But it will be a slow ride." Quickly, ignoring Eggman's dismay and threats that he'll seek his revenge, the Mobians copied how they were linked the first time. It was more complicated now since they had three children, but they managed to find a way to overcome that challenge, one including Tails having to hold on Sonic's back so Sonic could hold Rouge's hand and Amy's one free hand.

Rouge flapped her wings as hard as she could, grunting at the weight pulling her down. It was more than difficult for her to hold up everyone. The fortress began to rustle. Eggman didn't care knowing he will overcome this blast. Even if he landed in the ocean, he will go inside since the glass was water-proof. He smiled sinisterly in the directions the Mobians were flying off in. "I _will _get you soon Sonic," Eggman swore, "I will get you and that fox kid, and all your friends…Mobius will be _mine_ and nothing will stand in my way…not even you Hedgehog, believe me when I say you have been _warned_." Eggman silently vowed to get revenge right when the messaging TVs exploded.

The fortress gave a sharp jerk as the whole front blew up into smoke. The smell of burnt metal filled the air as the airship began to slowly descend down into the shore. Tails clutched Sonic tighter. He could tell the ride was about to get bumpy, and it did. With the air suddenly occupied with the thick black smoke, Rouge was unable to focus and see straight. She tried to fly lower to the ground which wasn't the best option seeing the weight she was carrying and the coming tree branches. Going closer to the ground made the balance uneven and Rouge struggled to hold up everyone. Eventually, she gave out, letting go of everyone. Luckily they were close to the ground so nobody was harmed, rolling on impact. Can't say they didn't get dirty though. Seeing what happened, Rouge landed next to the fallen Mobians.

"Sorry 'bout the rough landing," Rouge apologized, dusting herself free from the dirt.

Amy sat with Cream in her lap, expecting the bunny for any signs of injuries at all. Espio did the same with Charmy. Surprisingly, they had no scratches at all and due to the two keeping the infants close to their chests when they "crashed", the babies had no dirt on them either.

"You okay bro?" Sonic asked, running a hand through his quills to loosen some dirt. Tails nodded, "I'm okay." He grinned tiredly. Sonic chuckled towards the kit. "Boy, I think somebody needs another bath." He said, gesturing to how dirty Tails was. "You do too," Tails smiled, pointing to his older brother. Sonic shrugged, "As much as I hate water, your right."

"I'm just glad Eggman didn't win," Amy said, snuggling the baby rabbit. "Miss Vanilla will be exultant to see Cream again." The six-year-old smiled. Cream smiled back, reaching a hand up at Amy.

"We should go back to Miss Vanilla's," Espio reminded, gesturing to the sky which was painted an orange with dark pink and purple streaks, and way above, few stars were spotted. They hadn't landed too far off from town – a little closer would've been nice but they'll manage.

"We'll I'm heading over to Miss Vanilla's," Amy said, beginning to walk. "I'll see you." She waved. Espio joined her since Vector was also back with the mother rabbit. He silently waved goodbye and followed Amy.

"I guess we'll head home," Sonic said to himself, realizing Tails yawning wearily. Before he left, Sonic pulled out the two emeralds they took from Eggman. He tossed the red one over to Rouge who caught it. Her eyes sparkled at the gem. "You deserve it." Sonic smiled. He gave his signature thumbs up to the bat. Knuckles, whose arms were crossed, sighed and admitted. "You do deserve it…just don't give it to Eggman."

"Hey Knuckie,"

Knuckles looked up.

"Catch,"

The red Chaos Emerald was thrown over to him. He caught it, but was startled. Realizing what happened, he looked over at Rouge curiously, expecting an answer. Rouge shrugged carelessly. "I switch sides, remember? I just might give it to Eggy." She turned away, opening her wings. "Keep it safe for me." She smiled, and then flew away into the night sky.

Knuckles was dumfounded by what just happened. Blinking a few times, he regained himself. "Um…whatever," he mumbled. Sonic chuckled. Knuckles said nothing, but asked where the other Chaos Emeralds were. Sonic replied by saying they were in his house, and finished by giving the other emerald in his hand to Knuckles, not wanting to perform Chaos Control. Knuckles agreed to hold onto them, then waved as he walked off, obviously heading back to his island.

By then, it was dark out. Sonic looked over to Tails who was falling asleep. Sonic smiled at the cute scene. Bending sown, he lifted his baby bro off the dirt ground. He studied his surroundings, getting an idea to where his home was. Once he had a picture, he sped off towards home, and more importantly, bed.

It was the fall month; the air was somewhat chilly as leaves of all colours blew around in the wind. Sonic was sitting on the couch with Knuckles in the living room, finishing off the last of the birthday cake. Today was Tails' birthday. The young kit was turning three years old today. (The reason I said "fall month" is because Tails' debut was on October 16, but for some was November 17, so I'm leaving it as it is) Everyone came over to celebrate, and seemed to be having a good time.

Tails was currently opening gifts in front of Sonic. Tails sat on the living room carpet with a one-year-old Cream and Charmy who kept ripping the paper and playing with the bows that Tails removed from the presents. He got some toys, books, colouring books, and more shirts. Tails was really happy, it was not only his first actual birthday, but his first birthday with his new friends. Sonic couldn't be more pleased seeing Tails so happy; he just hoped the kit would like his present.

Sonic placed his plate of cake crumbs on the coffee table. He turned behind the couch and pulled up a gift bag. He walked over to Tails and kneeled next to him, placing the gift in front of him. As the other gifts, Charmy grabbed at the paper and pulled it off, ripping it. Cream played with the bows, sticking some on her outfit. Excited, Tails began to dig in the bag.

Tails' blue eyes widen. He pulled out a new pair of shoes. They were bright red with a white front. He loved them. Also in the bag was a small box with a picture of an airplane on it. "It's a model airplane," Sonic explained. "You and I can build it together and then paint it." Tails thanked Sonic for the gift, but Sonic winked telling him to look in the bag once more. Interested, Tails looked in the bag and smiled brightly. It was a picture of him and Sonic, framed. He was on Sonic's back, holding up an ice cream. Sonic held his own ice cream, smiling up at his brother. On the frame it said _Brothers4Ever_. Tails remembered that day. It was his first day to the park. He turned and hugged Sonic.

"Thank you Sonic!" he grinned. "For everything."

"Sure thing, Buddy," Sonic replied, hugging Tails back. When they let go, Sonic ruffled Tails' bangs. "Happy Birthday, Tails."

**And this is the final one to my "A Walk" series. Phew, this was a nice walk in the past (pun) XD I hope y'all enjoyed it 'coz I had fun writing it. The birthday scene just came to me for a brotherly fluff moment. I thought it would be cute ^^ **

**So anyway, if you enjoyed it, please leave a review and I thank all of you who have read all the oneshots and have supported them. I'll defiantly be writing more stories in the near future, and although I don't take requests, I do take suggestions so if ya wanna suggest a story, I'll see what I can do. Thanks again to everyone for supporting my first Sonic works, love you all! **

**Sonic and Friends: Bye! **

**OK, who wants pizza? ;D **


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